Least Favourite Final Moment

So going off the topic of all those wonderful final moments posted in the other thread, what moment is for you either anticlimactic, a disappointment or a let down at the end of a show?

For me, and this is only because I have recently worked on it, but the final number of Jason Robert Brown's "13" Brand New You, adds an unnecessary upbeat ending after the real finale A Little More Homework (one of many issues I have with the show/score).

So what else is out there that doesn't sit quite right in its final moments? Or has been corrected in a revival/remount?

The last moment of Seminar, when Alan Rickman holds out the glass and goes, "You wanna be a writer?" and the protege takes it and drinks. Nothing over the course of the play indicated that he might not want to be a writer.

I've always disliked the overdramatic "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO" in the very last bit of Miss Saigon. It always takes me out of the moment. I've seen a few productions where Chris just breaks down sobbing or looks up with an anguished expression and it's more effective to me.

I love the ending on the cast recording, but on stage it leaves much to be desired. I always pictured an empty stage with just Eva and Che, with Eva walking away from the audience into the darkness. I think this could have worked very well with the recent revival's set. Che could have been on the second tier, and Eva could walk through the center door. Evita is one of my favorite shows, but I have always found the montage to be a letdown.

Oh, this is easy. BILLY ELLIOT. What a shame, the show ending with only Michael on the stage. The show is about Billy Elliot, and how he was able to reach his life's dream, even though family, finances, and politics were all working against him. The victory of the human spirit. And in the film, when we see Billy soar into the air and his father living this dream, moved me so that I will watch the film through its entirety just to witness that final scene.

it's not about Michael, who was also there to witness his friend's dream. The producers could have easily approximated that ending on stage.

Jane, I actually avoided seeing BILLY ELLIOT for years because the film is a titch too sentimental and heavy-handed for my taste, and I imagined that musicalization would intensify the sap. Its ending is a good example of why I love the musical so much more than the movie. It's because the show doesn't send the audience out into the street with an image of Billy soaring through the air that, for me, makes it more poignant, touching, and a little sad. We've watched Billy struggle his way toward achieving his dreams, but the ending reminds us that he's just one person who's broken out of a depressed and depressing cycle. Michael seems to have an indomitable spirit at his young age, but he's got some hard times coming up, being who he is and where he is, just like Billy did, and to me, that final image expands the scope and breadth of the themes and re-orients the audience's perspective. I adore it and admire the show all the more for it.

Usually, I post under my "nom de plume" (nom de guerre?) of PhantomPhan, but I was too lazy to sign out after editing a review and sign back in. So here I am, as grandmotherly me.

The final moment that I really disliked was in the "new" "My Fair Lady" tour, produced by Cameron Mackintosh, which I saw at the Kennedy Center probably in about 2008. The late Christopher Cazenove, who was in his 60's and overweight, was completely miscast, in my view. Instead, Higgins should be youngish and sexy as hell. (You've certainly read rants by my alter ego, PhantomPhan,on this topic). Perhaps because of the decision to downplay any physical attraction or love interest between Higgins and Eliza, the final moment of that version consisted of the two crossing their arms and facing off. Ripoff!

Audrey, the Phantom Phanatic, who nonetheless would rather be Jean Valjean, who knew how to make lemonade out of lemons.

The ending of Hairspray. While 'You Can't Stop The Beat' is a terrific number, the inclusion of the Von Tussles isn't believable. The movie fixes it a little.

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Kinky Boots did the same thing, including the ex-girlfriend in the finale. Actually, it annoyed me that all the workers magically showed up in Milan. I know it was necessary to have a big closing number, but it made no sense in light of the plot.

Phreak, are there two kinds of people? book wicked people and broadway wicked people. I hated the book. loved the musical. and the ending, I know it is seen as cheesy broadway but I absolutely loved it. I could even justify it. as a kid (long, long ago) we were amazed when we discovered that, in the movie, the witch was caused to melt by using a trap door in the filming. brilliant. also brilliant that the trap door from the movie could be a part of the "true" story and was the method used intentionally by elphaba and fiero to escape forever. happily ever after. I was surprised and I loved it. I might even admit to a bit of a tear. so sue me.

For me, Spring Awakening. I thought the final song sort of came out of nowhere and made absolutely no sense. Or maybe it just felt that way because I was so sick of being beaten over the head with the after school special message, I was comatose by the time the finale arrived.

Oh, this is easy. BILLY ELLIOT. What a shame, the show ending with only Michael on the stage.

I actually liked that. Michael and Billy ultimately supported and influenced each other. They were kindred spirits. I thought it made sense that when Billy leaves, we see a symbol of their friendship and positive influence. We are left with the feeling that Michael is the beginning of the legacy Billy leaves behind. I found it quite touching.

"What can you expect from a bunch of seitan worshippers?" - Reginald Tresilian

Madam Armfeldt's death in A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC. Silly, unmotivated, and absolutely pointless. It adds absolutely nothing to the proceedings except a bit of bogus profundity. Even Ingmar Bergman didn't kill the old lady off.

"If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don't have to worry about the answers." Thomas Pynchon, GRAVITY'S RAINBOW
"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away." Philip K. Dick
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